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2017 Northeast Conference Men's Golf Preseason Coaches Poll            1. Bryant (6)            2. Wagner (2)            3. Robert Morris (1)            4. Fairleigh Dickinson            5. Saint Francis U            6. Sacred Heart            7. Central Connecticut            8. LIU Brooklyn            9. St. Francis Brooklyn             First place votes in parentheses

 
   
Somerset, NJ -- After coming within a whisker of winning the program’s second Northeast Conference (NEC) men’s golf title a year ago, the league’s head coaches have installed Bryant as this year’s preseason favorite. The Bulldogs received six first place votes in the poll. Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own teams.

Defending NEC champion Wagner was picked second with two first place votes. 

Bryant and Wagner finished with identical scores at least year NEC Championship, but the Seahawks prevailed in the first playoff in league history to take home their first conference crown.

Robert Morris, which finished fourth last year, also received a first place vote and took third in the poll. The coaches tabbed Fairleigh Dickinson to finish fourth, Saint Francis U fifth and Sacred Heart in the sixth spot. They were followed in order by Central Connecticut, LIU Brooklyn and St. Francis Brooklyn. 

Led by sixth-year head coach Charlie Blanchard, the Bulldogs return 2016 NEC Golfer of the Year McKinley Slade (Saunderstown, RI/South Kingstown), who enters his senior season in Smithfield. Slade posted seven top-10 finishes in 2015-16, including a tie for fifth at the NEC Championship with an even-par 216 (69-75-72). His 72.8 stroke average per round led the conference by a wide margin and he was a three-time NEC Golfer of the Week. Joining Slade on the All-NEC first team was classmate Ryan Tombs (Bedford, NH/ Bedford). Tombs was a two-time NEC Golfer of the Month this past fall and averaged 73.2 strokes per round last year. He tied for first at the 2016 NEC Championship with a three-under 213 (72-69-69) before falling in the third hole of a playoff. Tombs, who has finished no lower than second in three trips to the NEC Championship, posted four top-three finishes on the year.

In leading Wagner to its first league title after being picked seventh in the preseason poll, Chris Fourman was named NEC Coach of the Year by his peers. Now in his seventh year at the helm of the program, Fourman returns NEC Rookie of the Year Lucas Moreno (Bogota, Colombia/Gimnasio Campestre), along with fellow All-NEC second teamers Anton Frondelius (Munkedal, Sweden/The Gunnery) and Erik Tedfelt (Malmo, Sweden/National Golf Program). Moreno finished tied for third at the 2017 NEC Championship, recording the highest finish of any Wagner golfer, while Frondelius placed ninth and Tedfelt took 15th. Frondelius paced the Seahawks with a 75.0 stroke average, just ahead of Tedfelt’s 75.3 average.

Returning for Fairleigh Dickinson is senior U Minn Woon (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia/ Bolles School), the 2017 NEC individual champion and All-NEC first team honoree. Woon went on to represent the NEC at NCAA Regional competition last May.
 
Also back in the fold this season is Central Connecticut junior Anthony Sebastianelli (Clark Summit, PA/Abington Heights), who finished eighth at the NEC Championship en-route to second team All-NEC accolades.

The NEC Tournament has seen a different champion in each of the last six seasons with Sacred Heart (2011), Mount St. Mary’s (2012), Saint Francis U (2013), Bryant (2014), Robert Morris (2015) and Wagner (2016) all hoisting the trophy. 

The 2017 NEC Men’s Golf Championship will be held from April 28-30 on the Hills Course at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, FL.
 
About The Northeast Conference
Now in its 36th year, the Northeast Conference is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of 10 institutions of higher learning located throughout six states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to four of the largest markets in the United States - New York (#1), Pittsburgh (#23), Baltimore (#27), and Hartford/New Haven (#30).  Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 22 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 14 different NCAA Championships. NEC member institutions include Bryant, Central Connecticut, Fairleigh Dickinson, LIU Brooklyn, Mount St. Mary’s, Robert Morris, Sacred Heart, St. Francis Brooklyn, Saint Francis U and Wagner. For more information on the NEC, visit the league’s official website (www.northeastconference.org) and digital network (www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Google+, all @NECsports.